The average person defines euthanasia in lay terms as, "putting a horse to sleep" or "putting a horse down". The adjective "humane" is often used in conjunction with the term euthanasia. The understanding is that euthanasia is pain free and peaceful. The act of going to sleep is a pleasant and pain free experience.

Saying good-bye to a friend is never easy. Euthanasia isn't a subject you want to think about, much less read about. Although the life expectancy of a horse is 25 or 30 years, your three-year-old could face life-threatening colic tomorrow, or Old Reliable could sustain a severe injury in a misstep on his last schooling fence.

At Your Mercy: Euthanasia - What every horse owner needs to know about euthanasia, excerpted from Hands-On Senior Horse Care, The Complete Book of Senior Equine Management & First Aid. By Karen E.N. Hayes, DVM. MS & Sue M. Copeland.

The Emergency Euthanasia of Horses, UC Davis Veterinary Medicine Extension. Consideration for Owners, Equine Facility Managers, Auction Market Operators, Horse Transporters, and Law Enforcement Officers (November, 1999).